b Having told the Falſe Prophets their doom, he now turns His Speech ro the People, and gives them Counſel ( for he rather propounds than commands ) by a Metaphor taken from Travellers ; ra! being in doubt of their way, do {tand ſt1il, pauſe, and con- fitcr, whether the Direction they have received from ſome igno- 1aut Pe;fon, or fall: Guide, be r:ght or not. #4 Heb. Paths of Antiquity ; ſuch as their gcdly Forefathers of old were wont to waik is. The ancient Paths, Chap. 13. 15. Or, the Oracles of God, what DireGious his Word gives, T1/4.8. 20, Or, the Provi- Jerce of God, Ovlerve what hath been God's Ways and Merhod in Times paſt, with reference to Sin and Puniſhment, Deus. 4. 3,4 Jiudg.5.6, 8. Chap. 22, 15, 16, and What have been wont to be the belt Courtes; called here che good Way ; or the beſt way
becauſe they have not hearkened unto my y words,
nor to my Law, but z rejected it.
t The Inhabitants of the Earth; or elſe God having ſpoken to' the rational, he now ſpeaks to the very ſenſeleſs Creatures to ob- ferve his Proceedings, Ezekiel 36. 44 u The Chaldean Army, with all the direful Effets of it. x 9. d. They may thank them. ſelves for what {is come upon them, being the fruic of all theſe Contrivances and wicked Imaginations that their Hearts were full of, Prov. I. 29, 30, 31. See TIſatah 59. 7. and Chap. 4. 14. by which Phraſe is allo intimated, that their Sins were nat tome flight Overſights, bur medicated and digeſted Wickedneſs ; and therefore God will bring upon them the juſt Puniſhment for their Doings- y Thoſe Meſſages that I ſo frequently and ear- neſtly ſent unto them b' my Prophets, Prov. 1. 24, 25. 4 As it were bidding open Defiance to me, ſcorning to be ruled by me
nor your ſacrifices ſweet uuto me.
God by the Prophet meets with their Hypocrifte, who pleaſed themſelves with thetr outward Oblations and Sacrifices, and chought God would be pleated withthem roo; but he tells them plainly, they are to no purpoſe ; as he ſpeaks particularly in the Cloſe of the Verſe, Chap. 7. 21, 22. Exek. 20. 39. b That this was the Product of Sheba, a Country in Arabia Felix, to which Country Frankincenſe was peculiar. See on Tſz, 60: 6. c Or Cane, z. e. good, or the beſt Cane. the Article 7 hath the force of a Superlacive, for Cane that is beſt ; the Hebrews have no De- grees of Compariſon. The ſame that is mention'd as an Ingredient in the holy Oyl, Exod. 30. 23. SzeTIſa. 43. 24. d Not that ic was brought from the remotelt parts of the World, as from india, as lorae ; for it was known to the Fews in Moſes's time, Exol. 30. 23+ but becauſe it grew not in their own Land, but was tetched or brought to them from Sheba, Iſa. 60.6. where ic did grow, as Diodoras teſtifies, lib. 3. p. 125, and Strabo, lib. 16. 1 Kings 10. 2. compared with Fl 3. 8. whois called the Pucen of tbe South, and to come from the uttermoſt parts of the Earth, Maith, 12. 4. becauſe the South-Sea did bound the Country, q. d. To what purpoſeart thou at this Trouble and Charge to terch theſe Ingredients for thy Incenſe > e Not likely to atone me, they will not be tor Acceptance. I cannot take delight in them, Hof. 9. 4. as the next Expreſſion. q. d. Away with theſe childiſh Trifles, whereby you think ro pacifie me, By the'e Species he underſtands the whole legal Worſhip.
21 Therefore thus ſaith the LORD, Behold I will lay ſtumbling f blocks before this people, and the fathers and the g ſons together ſhall fall upon them :
the neighbour and his hk triend ſhall periſh.
f God gives this Name to all the Occaſions of the Fews ruin, expoleth them to,or fuffereth ſuch ch1»4,s to be laid in their way, as ſhall bethe Occaſion of their De{iruction : Such things which
they
Chap. VI.
26 * To what @ purpoſe cometh there to me in- *Iſa-r. rr. cenſe from b Sheba, and the ſweet c cane from a far 30d 66: 3. Country 4? your burnt offerings are not e acceptable, ;
: - Micah 6.6 a An Interrogatioi; of Expoſtulation, and Contempt, wherein gc. l
_ 2 22 Thus faith the: LORD, Behold, a people co- pg he t 42,meth from the * north k country, and a great aation 33. fhall be/ raiſed from the 7: lides of the earth.
Chap. VI.
they ſhall not get over ; or an HypzRage, I will bring Deſtruction upon them ; as the Hebrews uſe to ſpeak, they have lent a City into the Fire, i. e. they have ſent Fire into zhe City. Or God doth here compare his Judgments to Traps, wherein they ſhall be taxen,
ng- : | As | maylt bring all to thy ({trict Obleryation and Scrutiny, as Gold-
which they thought eaſily to have evaded : Whar theſe Stumbli blocks are, ſeem to be expreſſed in the following Verſes. g
well the Fathers, that have more Prudence and Policy,as che Chil- dren that are more inadvertent, or poſſibly may count chemlelves leſs guilty, ſhall periſh by theſe Stumbling-blocks ; no recove- ring for themſelves, Iſa. 8. 14, 15- þ Men of all ſorts and cooditt- ons,the greateſt Intimatesand Afſociates,tho'all lay their Heads to- gether for Counſe], yet ſhall they not beable to help one another,
but a promiſcuous Deftruttion there ſhall be, Yer.1 1. Cb. 13,14
; Now the Prophet is ſhewing whar thele deſtructive ſtumbling- blocks ſhall be, of which he had propheſied 4o Years already, and; yet they would not be warned. k See Yer. 11 1 God ſhall ſtir up the Chaldzans like a great Storm or Tempeſt, Chap. 2.15. and 25. 32. See Exch. 23. 22, m The remote and uttermoſt parts of the Babylonian Territories, tho' at the greateſt diſtance, yer God will bring them ; which may note the greatnels of God's Dilpleaſure againſt Judah, this Circumſtance being noted among the Cut les,
Deut. 28. 49. See Iſa. 5-25, 26,07. Chap. 5. 15.
23 They ſhall lay hold on bow and » ſpear : they are cruel, and have no o mercy : their voice roar- eth like the p ſea, and they ride upon q horſes, ſet in r array as men for war, againſt thee, O daugh-
ter of / Zion,
n Or they ſhall carry ; they ſhall not want Military Ammunition
of all ſorts for the diſpatch of this great work ; Synechdochically ex-
preſſed tor all forts of Weapons. So Pſal. 35. 2, 3. o See Chap.zo.